WEIGHING THE CONTRASTS OF FEAR AND HOPE
If America’s back-to-back political conventions this year have shown us anything, it is the stark contrast between dark fear and the eternal audacity of hope. We offer a handful of highlights to illustrate the point:
Masterfully, Hillary Clinton played on the fact that Republicans can’t talk about hope. The accomplishments of the past eight years are Democratic: President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden took office after Republicans embarked on a divisive war we shouldn’t have been in and after the Great Recession that bottomed our economy. Then they oversaw a recovery that brought nearly 15 million new private-sector jobs. Along the way, they brought health insurance to 20 million uninsured Americans, saved our auto industry and made great strides in defending us from the growing terrorist threats that grew out of the aforementioned war. To put it another way: GM is alive, and Osama is dead. But if you listened to Donald Trump’s nomination acceptance speech last week, our streets are teaming with alien danger, terrorist threats and empty factories. With characteristic Trump ego, he asserts that only he can fix it.
Clinton, with incredible class, mocked the Trump brand that sports ties made in China, suits made in Mexico, furniture made in Turkey and picture frames made in India.
“Donald Trump says he wants to make America great again — well, he could start by actually making things in America again, said Clinton. Then she took on his one-man-fix-it national insult.
“None of us can raise a family, build a business, heal a community or lift a country totally alone. America needs every one of us to lend our energy, our talents, our ambition to making our nation better and stronger,” Clinton said. “That’s why “Stronger Together” is not just a lesson from our history, not just a slogan for our campaign.
“It’s a guiding principle for the country we’ve always been and the future we’re going to build — a country where the economy works for everyone, not just those at the top. Where you can get a good job and send your kids to a good school, no matter what zip code you live in. A country where all our children can dream, and those dreams are within reach. Where families are strong, communities are safe, and, yes, love trumps hate.”
The conventions also made it clearer than ever that change is a word with much nuance.
There’s change as in new — just new, novice. And then there’s change as in innovative thinking — the kind that moves us forward without being disruptive, especially when it benefits from seasoned know-how.
Former President Bill Clinton set the table for examination of this nuance with his illuminating description Wednesday of Hillary, the “change maker.” For her part, Hillary on Thursday unapologetically accepted the mantle of “establishment” by explaining “why” she is a creature of the system and a policy wonk. That “why” is us. “Sometimes the people at this podium are new to the national stage. I am not one of those people,” she said just before ticking off her many titles and some of her lesser-known earlier accomplishments, like helping to ensure access to education for all students with disabilities.
“It’s true. I sweat the details of policy — whether we’re talking about the exact level of lead in the drinking water in Flint, Mich., the number of mental health facilities in Iowa, or the cost of your prescription drugs. Because it’s not just a detail if it’s your kid — if it’s your family. It’s a big deal. And it should be a big deal to your president.”
That doesn’t’ mean we should settle for the status-quo. We do need change and we do need some fixing.
For that, forget the guy who can only say, “Believe me … .” Instead listen to the candidate who says, “I believe. … I believe America thrives when the middle class thrives.”
Clinton acknowledged Thursday that Americans are rightfully mad.
“Democrats are the party of working people. But we haven’t done a good enough job showing that we get what you’re going through.”
And of course the wonky Hillary, the detail person who by her own admission likes the “service” part of public service much more than the “public” part, has plans. Ticking them off took quite some time — especially waiting for crowd applause to stop. But here is one of the best:
“In my first 100 days, we will work with both parties to pass the biggest investment in new, good-paying jobs since World War II. Jobs in manufacturing, clean energy, technology and innovation, small business, and infrastructure. … And we will transform the way we prepare our young people for those jobs.”
There’s more. Much more. But perhaps the most important plan is this one — being a unifier.
“I will be a president for Democrats, Republicans and Independents. For the struggling, the striving and the successful. For those who vote for me and those who don’t. For all Americans.”
Believe her.